sailor. Opal Mendoza, all forget-me-nots and pale blue ruffles, was behaving like a little saint, kneeling, with big blue eyes meltingly cast toward heaven, remembering to smooth out her skirt when she sat down, singing sweetly, shrilly, with the other children:
Can no longer, death, appall us:"
As sweetly and shrilly as she had sung all the way to church: "I have lace on my pan-ties! I have lace on my pan-ties!"
Thou, O grave, canst not enthrall us.
Alleluia!"
The children sang, balancing on hassocks, thinking of the plants in the chancel that they would be allowed to choose from and take home. Charlotte always chose her plants so wisely, safe dependable geraniums that grew bigger and bigger, and that she could take back year after year at Easter to help trim the chancel. But Jodie, in spite of all the good advice Kate and Charlotte gave him, would choose heliotrope that died in a week or so under his passionate sniffing.
